hello there. welcome to "newsline." it's tuesday, september 7th, 8:00 a.m. in tokyo. i'm catherine kobayashi. ufj plans to invest in a chinese company to launch a full scale asset management business in china. sources say mitsubishi ufj trust and the hang high based swwg asset company agreed that the japanese bank will purchase 33% of the chinese company's shares for about $100 million. mitsubishi is negotiating

details of the plan with china's financial authorities. the chinese company is mainly managing personal assets of about 1.5 billion. mitsubishi ufg trust says individual investment will increase as china's economy grows sharply. the japanese bank is also predicting strong interest from institutional investors in areas such as pension investments. restrictions on foreign investment in the asset management business are easing in china. mitsubishi ufg trust is the first bank to invest in an asset-management company in china. infectiousisease experts are calling for antibiotics for the mdm-1 gene which is recent to most antibacterial drugs. the ndm-1 infection case was reported by a hospital linked to doakio medical university in tochigi prefecture north of

tokyo. the hospital says the bacteria were found last year in e. coli samples taken from a japanese man who returned from india. the new superbug has been spreading in india and europe triggering a global health alert. it's fear that id could mutate into a more highly patgenic bacteria. germany will extend the life of its nuclear power plants due to the lack of alternative energy sources such as solar or wind power. chancellor angela merkel revealed the plan on monday. the lifespan of the seven plants that began operations before 1980 will be extended to 40 years from 32. other nuclear power plants will be given an extra 14 years.

former chancellor gerhard schroeder's administration had decided to halt operations on all 17 nuclear plants around 2022 to promote renewable sources of energy. if merkel's plan is introduced, some nuclear facilities are expected to be in operation beyond 2022. opposition parties are against the new policy which needs parliamentary approval. the government says it only needs to be approved by the lower house where the ruling coalition holds a majority. but the opposition argues that the upper house has to approve it as well. the ruling parties recently lost a majority in the upper house. if the government enforces the plan, leading opposition members have hinted that they would bring the case to the german constitutional court. the economy trade and industry ministry saez suspended nuclear power reactor in western japan can resume operations as safety measures are now in place. two reactors at the nuclear

power plant in matsue, shimane prefecture operated by chugoku electric power company have been suspended since march after they were found to have missed 511 mandatory safety checks. on monday, the ministry gave approval for resumption of operation. the power company completed inspections of the plant's number two reactor and the ministry's nuclear and industrial safety agency has also checked the reactor and quirled that steps have been taken to prevent a recurrence of the problem. the company now plans to seek the understanding of local residents about restarting the number two reactor and accelerating inspections of the other one. marine product wholesalers in japan are calling for a stronger international agreement the curb the overfishing of tuna in the pacific ocean. they say the fish's population is declining dramatically. representatives of the wholesalers union visited the fisheries minister masahiko

yamada on monday. they handed him a petition with 40,000 signatures gathered from the fishing industry. the fisheries minister told the wholesalers he wants to take concrete steps to tighten restrictions. japan, south korea and taiwan are among those who engage in tuna fishing in the pacific. roll nets, which capture large volumes of tuna, have been blamed for the drastic population drop. the petition came one day before an international conference opens in fukuoka, western japan, to discuss ways to manage tuna resources in public. japan and south korea will participate in the conference. the he of the business community in western japan has called on the government to take additional steps to counter the yen's 15-year high against the u.s. dollar. the chairman of the kansai economic federation, hiroshi shimozuma made the appeal when he met the economy and trade minister masayuki naoshima in tokyo on monday.

shim o sum ma said businesses in the kansai region maintained strong exports and imports until july but they have been severely affected by the sharp rise of the yen. the region comprises six prefectures including osaka and kyoto. he said more companies will have to transfer operations overseas if the yen gets stronger. he added that the government appears to lack a sense of crisis. the minister responded that the yen's appreciation is his biggest concern because it will push down the profits of japanese companies in the short term and may also force more japanese firms to move overseas. he said the government realizes it is necessary to introduce further measures quickly. he said that his ministry is drawing up plans to make it easier for businesses to invest in japan.

a suicide bomber drove a car into a police station in northwestern pakistan on monday killing at least 19 people. the attack took place in the town of lackey mar walt, shattering the police station and neighboring houses. at least 19 police officers and it is ens including children were killed. more than 30 others were wounded. suspected islamic extremists have unleashed a wave of attacks in pakistan this month. more than 80 people were killed in bombings last week that targeted minority shia muslims in the eastern city of lahore and the western city of quetta.

north korea has announced that it will release a south korean fishing boat and crew members that it seized in the sea of japan last month. the transfer is to take place near the two countries' boarder in the sea of japan on tuesday evening. the announcement was made through the korean central news agency on monday. on august 8th, a north korean vessel towed a south korean squid boat with a crew of four south koreans and three chinese to a port on the northeast coast. the south called on the north to release the crew. the north said the decision to release the crew members was made from a humanitarian point of view after the crew admitted coming into the economic zone and promised never to do it again. monday's announcement is the north's first flexible response to the south since tensions soared over the sinking of an n. a commission concluded that the

vessel was sunk by a north korean torpedo. chinese president hu jintao said his government plans to improve the life of workers in shenzhen, an economic bordering hong kong. hu made the comment at a ceremony to mark the 30th anniversary of the zone on monday. shenzhen was designated in 1980 as the first special economic zone in china to accept foreign investment. >> hu stressed that the reform and open door policy led to the economic recovery of china. hu also said the government will establish a system for companies and workers to share benefits and create better working conditions for workers who are from the country's rural areas. in china a widening economic gap

is becoming a problem as the country has been achieving rapid economic development over the past 30 years since the introduction of special economic zones. death has always been a taboo topic in south korea. but the rapidly aging population means it's a topic that's being discussed more openly as people contemplate their final days. >> people talk about their feelings towards their families and read their wills. it's part of a course offered at a university. each person experiences a mock

version of their death. they evaluate their lives to this point and think about how to spend their remaining years. classes like these are available all over the country. >> it gave me an opportunity to think about my family. >> it made me want to cherish the time i have left. >> to prepare for death is to learn how to live the rest of your life. dying well compliments living a good life. that's why people are interested. >> traditionally korean society has treated death as a taboo subject. they locate gravesites in mountains far from residential areas. unlike japanese, they do not keep a buddhist altar at home. but the rapidly changing age

demographic causes a shift in feelings and customs. it's manifested in the way funerals are conducted. this funeral hall is located in a hospital. it allows family members to send their loved ones on their journey to heaven. koreans are taking to this kd of facility. >> we are trying to be a hospital that centers its activities around the patient. i believe hospitals play a very important role in today's society. >> people are beginning to raise the issue of dying with dignity. this woman says when she faces death, she does not want life-prolonging treatment. kim, along with her husband, documented her wishes. in korea, deep-rooted confucian

values teach children to take care of their parents until the last moment. but kim has a different perspective. >> i don't want to become a burden to my son. rather than prolonging my life for several months, i'd rather accept death. >> but when kim told her son about this, he objected. >> he said he can't understand why i'm thinking like that now. and that he will do his best until the very last moment. i plan on having a serious talk with him. >> korean society has always

avoided the subject of death. but now it seems that more people are trying to take control of matters related to their mortality. >> earlier nhk world's hideshi hara spoke with kim kyeng who is a professor at seoul university. >> professor kim, many are discussing issues related to death and dying. what is making people more open toward the end of life? there are big affairs to make people think about death in korea and koreans have been exposed to a unique experience of two nationally renowned legal matters named the case of 1998 and another case of 2009.

both court cases were related to dying with dignity or euthanasia related issues. those two stories of dying under unconscious status made many koreans become familiar and aware of the problems and difficulties arising when we encounter mechanical life-prolonging treatments for the dying patients. this could be the reason why more koreans are becoming more open toward death, i think. >> and in our report more people seem to believe that dying well complements living a good life. but in what way is this new approach to death affecting how koreans view life? >> it is a difficult question, but according to a five-year survey done by a university

faculty member, more than 70% of the population accept the meaning of dying in dignity in korea. i think death is still an unfavored topic among many parts of the world including korea. and that could be related with their culture and religion of their ancestors. but again, there has been a big change of korean society for the past decade. i think korea is start to follow the tendency of civilized countries like u.s. and some european countries such as netherlands and the united kingdom. >> thank you very much for joining us today. japanese people enjoy eating a variety of seaweed.

one kind famous for its soft texture is considered a delicacy. a good harvest of kelp or kombu, as it's called in japan, needs sunny weather, never a sure thing in some parts of japan. next we follow some kelp harvesters in hokkaido, northern japan, who must wait for a sunny day. kombu gatherers in the hidaka region start harvesting in july. summer is the busiest time of year because that's when the kelp is softest. drying seaweed requires strong summer sunlight. kombu is said to be at its sweetest and most delicious when the sun dries it quickly, while it is still fresh. this means that to make good kombu, the kelp can only be harvested on sunny days.

unfortunately, there haven't been many sunny days this season. takashi has harvest ed for year. he's only gone out ten times. that's half as much as usual. >> when the tide comes in, the waves are high. it's hard to get in and out of the boat. i may not go out today. my annual income is determined by this harvest, so it's a matter of life and death for me. >> when the weather is bad, he tries to gather kombu but the shore to bring in a little income. the pounding surf makes the job difficult. nitta has had better days.

>> you want to go out in your boat? >> i do. the quality is much better when you get out in the boat. i really want to go out. >> all nitta wants is a little good weather. and so the fishermen perform a traditional ceremony. it's a time honored ritual, laughing to bring back the sun. tradition says laughter blows the clouds away. >> the ritual must have worked.

after eight days of waiting, they can go out and gather kelp. fresh loads of kelp on the beach make it lively again. in just three hours, they lay out the fresh kombu to dry. >> finally,t's y. we did well toy. everyone is praying for good weather. i'm planning to work really hard the second half of this season. >> the strong rays of the sun are what make his kombu so delicious. for these kelp harvesters, it's

been a long summer waiting for the sun to emerge. [ train horn blows ] >> all right. the harvesters say they'll gather kombu until october. now, let's take a look at the market figures.

hi there. welcome to your world weather update. in eastern asia we're keeping an eye on our storm system malou. it's now a severe tropical storm moving fairly slowly. so it's getting to this region here, sth kea and northern end of kyushu in japan that have really been affected by this storm system. so we are seeing some very stormy conditions, strong winds as well as torrential rains are falling and conditions are set to deteriorate even further for kyushu today with up to 200 millimeters of rain possible as well as damaging winds, and it doesn't look like it's going to be making landfall here, but it will continue to maintain that strength and move towards the sea of japan later on in the week and will hit central japan as well. so keepou updated on what's going on here. to the north of japan we also have a separate system that's going to continue to bring heavy rains to hokkaido as well as tock u whack u region.

but rather humid with this rain activity to the north and also to the south. tropical depression just to the of the philippines needs watching as well. it doesn't look like it's going to be strengthening just yet. but it will be bringing wet and windy conditions to areas in the vicinity. central china, too, looking at more heavy showers to continue in isolated areas. do watch out for that. beijing coming in at 27, 29 and cloudy in seoul and 35 degrees in tokyo. so staying hot in the central areas of japan. let's head to the americas then. we're keeping an eye on tropical storm hermine. it could become a hurricane before making landfall here in northeastern mexico tonight. we do have tropical storm warnings as well as hurricane watches in place for the east coast of southern texas and northeastern mexico. and once it makes landfall, it

is going to be coming back down to tropical depression eventually, but still going to be producing ample amounts of rain. so heavy rainfall is going to be a big concern over the next few days. flooding could be a problem here. now, towards the southeast, we have more unsettled weather for the florida peninsula, then over towards the north we have a big storm system that's going to be affecting the upper midwest today. and also for the pacific northwest as well, looking at some more showers to come on through. 16 degrees in vancouver and then 14 in winnipeg. so rather cool here but steadily climbing in toronto. 30 for your daytime high. finally taking a look at europe then we'll we have this massive system that's going to be impacting much of the british isles today, heavy rainfall warnings have been issued here. we've also got widespread rain for much of france. that rain moves into central areas as well. now to the north, it's going to be quite sunny under this high pressure system. but eastern europe dealing with a bit more showers.

these rain showers will be weakening but will stay put through your tuesday. 13 degrees in moscow, 16 in stockholm and 23 in pair es. here's the extended forecast.

major japanese trust bank mitsubis ufj trust and banking corporation plans to invest in a chinese company to launch a full scale asset management business in china. sources say mitsubishi ufj trust and the shanghai-based sywgb

asset management company agreed that the japanese bank will purchase 33% of the chinese company's shares for about $100 million. mitsubishi is negotiating details with the chinese financial authorities. the chinese company is managing personal assets of $1.5 billion. mitsubishi ufj trust says individual investment will increase as china's economy grows sharply.y. the bank is also predicting strong interest from institutional investors in areas such as pension investments. restrictions on foreign investment in the asset management business are easing in china. mitsubishi ufj trust is the first japanese bank to invest in an asset management company in the country. that wraps up this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks for joining us. we'll beack the toch the next hour. hope to see you then.